Vollkommenheit

Chapter 1:

Tochter

Author's note: This is not the third installment of the Perfection series. But this does follow the same time line as the Perfection series. The title is in German, and is does, in fact, mean perfection. And while the chapter titles will be in German, on the drop down menu, they will be in English. Okay…you know the drill. I don't own Phoenix Wright games or characters…and if I did, I'd be swimming in my own pool of money (which would be shaped like a dollar bill!) But I DO own Diana (pronounced Dee-ahna with a German accent), and Marty Cruss. I'll never abandon my story! Promise! And while you don't have to read Limits or Striving before this...it might help, as some of the flashbacks will be referenced to.

AND NOW...ON TO THE STORY

She supposed the earliest memories of her life were that of her father. She remembered looking up at him when she was a small child and feeling the awe and reverence that hovered around him. From her crib, she remembered that Manfred von Karma was the epitome of safety for her. He was a tall, staggeringly built man, with his graying hair slicked back to give him a professional air. His suits were always a deep blue in color; pressed perfectly with not a wrinkle in sight; and his cane was the thing that alerted Franziska to his presence. It was made of oak and had a golden sphere on top of it. Never in her wildest dreams did she believed that it would ever do her any harm. In her early years, she remembered him smiling at her several times. Whether he was smiling at the thought that here was the child who would continue his legal empire, or whether he was just fond of her in those times when she couldn't talk back...she would never know. She could never ask him, after all.

When she was three, her father had already taught her to read, and speak in both English and German. He preferred it when she spoke English around the house, since he spent most of his time traveling to America. Already, she was on the way to be her father's heir and be the perfect child he had always wanted. She remembered how much he hated her sister...though she wasn't even sure, as time went on, that she really had one...but she did. Later on, she met her sister, and her niece. Her sister...who seemed to be happy as a school teacher. What a fool! Not to want to follow in the von Karma name? Franziska could not understand her sister's actions.

"Papa?"

She remembered finding him in his lounge. The fire place was burning brightly on this cold, winter night. Sitting in his leather lounge chair, Manfred von Karma was still a startling sight to see while he was on his off time. He held himself high as his steel eyes skimmed the pages of a book until he heard the little child's voice. He had enough time to spare...enough to pay attention to this scrawny thing that would one day succeed him.

"Yes, Franziska? What is it, child?"

Manfred von Karma put down the large-leather bound book he had in his hands, and looked at the wide-eyed, somber child. She had walked into the room after the maid, Diana, had lifted her out of her crib. Franziska was given the leisure of being the only child in the house...and her father's instructions were clear for the time being: Franziska was to have her way, as the heir to the von Karma name. Nothing would be denied to her.

"What are you reading, Papa?" Franziska asked quietly and curiously. This must have been the right question to ask, as Manfred von Karma let a satisfied smile slip on to his lips. He reached down and lifted the child up on to his knee, placing the large book in her tiny hands. Franziska gawked at it...the book was huge and the leather binding felt cool to the touch.

"This, Franziska, is a book on law. I study it every day so that I can continue to do my job perfectly." Manfred von Karma stated with a tone of arrogance about his that the young child did not comprehend.

"...because...because you put bad people in jail to protect me, right Papa?" she asked with a smile that could melt an icy demon's heart.

But Manfred von Karma was not icy...but stone. And warmth did nothing to break the barriers of stone. He frowned, the disapproving look etched into his face.

"Of course not, child. Do you think me so foolish as to simply do my job to protect you? No one protects you in life, Franziska. Don't expect me to. Are we clear, daughter?" His voice was stern, foreboding, threatening even. It made Franziska tremble in her tiny little frame. She swallowed hard, and nodded quickly, not wanting to displease her father. "You have a voice! I've heard you use it, so speak UP!" the German man's tone of voice darkened to a deadly threat.

"...J...ja! Ich verstehe, Papa!" Franziska exclaimed quickly, and then switched back to English, knowing her father would prefer it. "I understand, Papa. I'm...I'm sorry. I just wanted to know what you do because I want...I want to be just like you, Papa!"

This childish confession may have been the one thing that sealed her fate.

It brought a devilish grin to Manfred von Karma's face, and let his laughter, like deep thunder, fill all of the room. Though his plan was to make Franziska his heir and force her to become a prosecutor, this had turned out better than he thought. Here she was, begging to become just like him.

"So, you want to be like your father, huh? Be a prosecutor?" he asked, rather pleased.

"Yes, Papa!" Franziska exclaimed, happy to see him proud of her. "Well then. You had better get started, Franziska. After all, you will be the heir to my legacy when I am long gone. And you will be the perfect prosecutor." Manfred von Karma took Franziska off of his knee and handed her the large book, which she could barely hold up. She put the book down on the floor and looked up as her father began to speak again.

"You know I must leave for America tomorrow, Franziska...Diana, your maid, will see to it that you are taken care of adequately. By the time I return home I expect for you to have that entire book read so many times that you can recite it by heart and you can quote any line from that book on the spot. If you can do that, then, and only then will I call you my heir and teach you to be a prosecutor. Don't let me down, Franziska."

"Oh no, Papa! I won't! I promise!" Franziska exclaimed with wide eyes. "But please...don't be gone long, Papa. I'll miss you."

She knew the minute she said it that it was the wrong thing to say.

"What was that?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.

"...I...I said that I would miss you, Papa!"

Manfred von Karma stood up and grabbed his cane, threatening the girl with it. Franziska began to slowly scoot back as he began to speak.

"NEVER say that, girl! If you ever want to be the perfect prosecutor that your father is, you have to stop this weakness, now! Such emotions are not tolerated in the courtroom, and have never been tolerated in my household! You know that!"

"Y-yes Father!" Franziska whispered, shocked beyond belief.

The prosecutor looked down at his daughter sternly for a moment, and then stood up straight, still staring at her. He slicked back a piece of hair that had fallen out of place, shook himself to regain his composure, and with a 'hmph', walked away slowly. Franziska could still hear the cane as her father fell out of her vision, and walked upstairs. She slowly exhaled a breath that she was not aware she was holding. The tiny girl then realized that her back was pressed hard against the wall, and she slowly eased herself up until she was standing again.

The book!

Franziska rushed to the floor where the book lay, and clutched it close to her chest. She didn't quite understand why her father had acted that way...it was as though his entire attitude had changed the moment she had agreed to becoming a prosecutor, and following in his footsteps...no, that couldn't be right. In her mind, in the still childish mind of Franziska von Karma, her father loved her...she was his heir...and she could always find favor with him. So her logic was that since she must have done something wrong, she had to fix it...and she would, by reading the book her father had given.

If she could show him...show him how perfect she could be...

This thought brought a smile to the face of the toddler as she looked down at the book. Filled with the curiosity that could only be described as that inherited through a von Karma, she quickly rushed upstairs to her room and closed the door behind her. She sat down in the pile of pillows in the corner and opened the large book...

And Franziska von Karma took a step towards the woman she would become, fifteen years later.

Please do let me know what you think of this! I really would like feedback and advice on whether or not to continue this story! Thank you!!